Post-Season Tire Round-Up

21 replies [Last post]

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 4:58am

Anonymous

Hi all,

As the main riding season winds down, I'm interested in people's experience with road tires this year. I started with Conti 4000's, which were supposed to wear well, but -- perhaps because of chance -- the ones I bought (about 4) all were destroyed with gashes, bulges, etc. pretty soon after I started using them (and my wife had a similar experience). I actually had better luck (perhaps just that) with Hutchinson Fusion Long Distance tires. And I've randomly tried various others, but not enough to form a good scientific sample :-).

Hence this note: a lot of you have put thousands of miles on various tires by now. Have you had a particularly good experience -- combination of lightness and durability -- with a road tire? I'd be interested in hearing and probably others as well.

David

P.S. I've followed earlier threads on tires (at the outset of the season), but am writing this to get an update on people's experience.

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 5:37am

Ron Thomson (not verified)

GP 4000

I rode the same set all season. Only one flat. May well go with the same tire for next season.
Now I've written this I'll probably flat next time out.....

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 6:09am

Robert Shay (not verified)

Conti GP 3000 -

Rode these tires all season. After 7,000 miles, only one flat on rear tire. It was my fault. I rode the tire over 1,800 miles and the soft rubber became a glass magnet.

Rear tire lasts about 1,600 miles and front tire lasts 3,000. Before each ride make sure tire pressure is 100 psi plus...

I purchased these tires in bulk last year.

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 7:54pm

Carol Waaser (not verified)

GP 3000

I've been about 3200 miles on this pair, including 2500 miles in Eastern Europe on very rough road (and off-road) surfaces. No flats. Keep thinking I ought to replace them, but then, why should I if they're still good?

Wed, 11/01/2006 - 11:20am

"Chainwheel" (not verified)

Mileage

"""Rear tire [Conti GP 3000] lasts about 1,600 miles and front tire lasts 3,000.""

That's pretty poor mileage. My cheap IRC ""Road Winner II Duros"" get at least twice that (3,500 to 4,000 miles on the rear), and I weigh ~195 lbs. And they're extemely resistant to flats. These are from my ""Made in Japan"" stash. Current ones may be made in Korea and may not be as good.

""Chainwheel"""

Wed, 11/01/2006 - 12:52pm

Robert Shay (not verified)

mileage on GP 3000's

Most of my riding is from 4:30am to 7am on weekdays on the backroads of CT (no traffic lights) and I like to go as fast as I can. I don't want flats to break my pace. So, I tend to replace my tires before the rubber wears to the threads. I have ridden the rear tire to 2,500 miles when the threads start to show, but I tend to get flats after 1,600 miles on the rear. I purchased these tires in bulk at $28 each new so I always keep the tires on my ride fresh.

This is a great thread as I will have to buy a new type of tire once my stash of GP 3000's is gone.

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 6:48am

Tom Laskey (not verified)

Attack/Force

I always had good luck with the Conti 3000's but I understand they are now discontinued in favor of the 4000's. I haven't used the 4000's myself but what I've heard from pretty much everyone I know who does use them is that they are more prone to flats than the 3000's. The poster above seems to have had good luck so YMMV. I switched to the Conti Attack/Force and really like them. I've had generally good luck in avoiding flats and they seem to roll reallllllllly smoooooooooth.

In the off-season I use Conti Gatorskins. Very flat resistant and not too clunky for a heavyish type tire.

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 12:39pm

Evan Marks (not verified)

4000 vs 3000 vs GP 4-season

Got data? Mileage & number of flats for each model? Is it possible that there's simply more glass on the streets this year? Often our tire opinions are (dis)colored by others' opinions, and not always borne out by objective testing.

I'm curious because I've been using the 4000s but don't have enough miles on them to compare, other than to say the ride is harsher at the same tire pressure than the other two Conti GPs.

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 2:49pm

Tom Laskey (not verified)

Hey, Mr. Methodology

I don't know about you but I'm not holding my breath for a scientific study on the effects of road conditions in the NYCC domain on various brands of tires. Absent that, I'll go by anecdotal evidence but I understand the limitations. Several people recommend Vredesteins but when I used them, I experienced repeated flat problems with several different sets. Hence my invocation of the caveat, YMMV. I would hope everyone understands we're all talking from personal experience here, not science.

Wed, 11/01/2006 - 6:47am

Evan Marks (not verified)

Anecdotally speaking...

...Vreds were great until the factory moved production from Holland to Asia - the workers found out beforehand and sabotaged the final production run leading to an epidemic of lumpy tires. Before that, they were the most flat-resistant tires I ever used. Since then, they're just not the same.

Michelins were the worst tires I ever used (the green ones, the first year they came out), or so I thought - 11 flats in one season. Then I found out about the glass slivers on the sidewalk where I walked the bike, leftover from that building's window replacement project. Carrying the bike across that stretch of sidewalk instead of wheeling it put an end to the flats. YMMV, indeed.

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 7:17am

#10

DvB (not verified)

+1 on the Attack/Force

Love them. Won't use anything else.

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 9:48am

#11

Christophe Jammet (not verified)

+1 for the conti attack/force tires. fantastic tires, fast tires, and i rarely (if ever) flat.

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 10:52am

#12

Ted (not verified)

Vredestein

"Between Verdestein Fortezza TriComp and SE, and a pair of Conti GP 3000, I have over 10,000 flat free miles in the past 3 years. Close to half those miles in Central Park.
My personal ""avoid at all costs"" is the Hutchinson Carbon Comp. I would say half the flats I have stopped for on group rides have been the Carbon Comps. Maybe they are super sticky and great for racing or something, but they always seem to be flat."

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 11:36am

#13

Eddy (not verified)

Vredestein Fortezza tyres work for me. (nm)

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 1:35pm

#14

Robert Dinkelmann (not verified)

Verdestein Fortezza TriComp

Been using Verdestein Fortezza TriComp for many, many years now and found them reliable, fast and comfortable. The number of flats I have had over the last 5 years I can count on less than 10 fingers.

What is great about them is that I can get the tire off the rim without tire irons.

I do replace my tires at the beginning of the season.

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 3:41pm

#15

Hank Schiffman (not verified)

Conti 4 Seasons, but only been on them for 2... Zoltan's choice. So far no flats and minimal rear tire wear. I do believe they are winners.

And 4000 GPs for uphill racing. At this rate they will begin to show wear in the year 3000. Also no flats.

No flats/ minimal wear; good traction in all the weather I've been in.

Okay, they don't make beer. Other than that they are perfect.

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 3:03pm

#16

David C (not verified)

Great so far, many thanks

All this is great. Many thanks for the posts thus far. And others are, of course, welcome. DC

P.S. I'll second the word on the Hutchinson Carbon Comp Insta-flat tires.

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 3:48pm

#17

[email protected] (not verified)

Outlier

"Specialized All Condition Armadillo

If your sensibility is touring, not racing, and you value flat protection.

Virtually everything else I try seems to cut within a few hundred miles."

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 5:47pm

#18

Ed (not verified)

YMMV

YMMV?

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 7:30pm

#19

Tom Laskey (not verified)

Your Mileage May Vary (nm)

Tue, 10/31/2006 - 6:09pm

#20

Rick Isham (not verified)

Conti 4 season

Second year riding Conti 4 seasons, 25 mm. Getting 4,000 miles on rear tires when new. I am changing tires not from wear, but from glass cuts. When the rear has 4,000 miles, I am rotating the front to the rear and getting another 2,000 with no problems. One pinch flat on a rear last year and one glass puncture on a front this year. Much better flat resistance than I was previously having with Gatorskins.

Mon, 11/06/2006 - 12:09pm

#21

Bob Ross (not verified)

this thread couldn't have come at a better time

"I had Hutchinson Fusions on the new bike I bought at the end of June, and after 1,820 miles they looked like a pack of wild rats had been gnawing on them: dozens of little cuts, holes, rips, starbursts, exposed & sometimes dangling threads (""plies""?), looked like I'd been riding over the business end of a saw blade. Never flatted in 4 months, but during this past Saturday's ride the back tire refused to hold air for longer than an hour. Since we were right near Piermont I stopped in at the Bicycle Exchange, where they basically said ""both your tires are toast.""

1820 miles? That seems like a ridiculously short lifespan. (Prior to this year I rode a hybrid with 38c knobbies, so I don't have any data points for comparison.)

Anyway, the Piermont guys also recommended the Conti Attack/Force combo, so, having already seen the enthusiasm for those tires in this thread, that's what I got.

Please tell me I can expect more than 1820 miles from a set!"

NYCC.org

Post-Season Tire Round-Up